felicitaciones, amigo
The English phrase "congratulations, my friend" is translated into Spanish as felicitaciones, amigo.
This phrase is used to express praise or joy regarding someone's success or good fortune.
Which one should you use?
While felicitaciones is used for specific achievements, felicidades is more commonly used for general celebrations like birthdays or anniversaries. Another common alternative for expressing congratulations on a specific success or achievement is enhorabuena, amigo!
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, you may hear ¡Felicidades, carnal! to mean "Congratulations, brother!"
How does it change in a sentence?
If the friend you are addressing is female, the noun amigo must change to the feminine form amiga to create felicitaciones, amiga.
Did you know?
- In Spain, enhorabuena is used specifically for achievements, but it literally translates to 'in good hour'.
- The Mexican slang carnal, used in ¡Felicidades, carnal!, comes from the word carne, meaning 'flesh'.
- In some Spanish-speaking cultures, saying felicitaciones may be accompanied by a 'abrazo', a hearty hug that often involves a pat on the back.
Examples in context
- ¡Felicitaciones, amigo, por tu nuevo trabajo!Congratulations, my friend, on your new job!
- Muchas felicitaciones, amigo, por el ascenso.Many congratulations, my friend, on the promotion.
- ¡Felicitaciones, amigo, ganaste la carrera!Congratulations, my friend, you won the race!
Example conversation
Sofía calls Javier to celebrate his graduation.
- Sofía¡Felicitaciones, amigo, por graduarte!Congratulations, my friend, on graduating!
- JavierMuchas gracias, Sofía, estoy muy feliz.Thank you very much, Sofía, I am very happy.
- SofíaTe lo mereces por tanto esfuerzo.You deserve it after so much effort.
- JavierGracias, eres una gran amiga.Thanks, you are a great friend.
